Companies House identity verification: do not wait for a single November deadline — your date depends on your role

Companies House identity verification is now a legal requirement for people who set up, run, own or control a UK company. It applies to directors and their equivalents, including members, general partners and managing officers, to directors of overseas companies registered in the UK, to people with significant control (PSCs), and to Authorised Corporate Service Providers (ACSPs), also known as Companies House authorised agents. In most cases, you need to verify only once.

Verification is free through the GOV.UK One Login service, which will ask simple questions to find the best route for you: using an app, answering security questions online, or entering photo ID details first and then going to a participating Post Office branch. You can also ask a registered ACSP, such as an accountant or solicitor, to verify your identity on your behalf. When verification succeeds, you receive a Companies House personal code. Share it only with people you trust to file on your behalf, because it connects your verified identity to your Companies House roles.

What you do with the code, and by when, depends on your role. A current director must provide it in the company's next confirmation statement, for each company of which they are a director, while a person becoming a director must provide it as part of the appointment filing. A PSC must provide it separately for the PSC role, even if they are also a director. PSCs have a 14-day window: for a PSC who is also a director, it starts the day after the confirmation statement date; for a PSC who is not a director, it falls within the first 14 days of their birth month; and a person who became a PSC after 18 November 2025 can provide it when first added to the register or within 14 days of being added.

That is an important correction to a common shorthand. The transition for existing directors and PSCs is often described simply as a 12-month period ending in November 2026, but the live GOV.UK guidance, last updated on 30 July 2026, frames the operative deadline by role and filing event. Waiting until November could therefore already be too late if your confirmation statement or PSC window falls earlier. If you do not comply on time, you may be committing an offence, and you may face prosecution and a fine or a financial penalty. Companies House also says it will in future publish a note against a non-compliant person's name on the public register, and that person will not be able to be appointed as a new director, register a new company, or register as an ACSP until they comply. Check your role and your window now, and complete verification in good time.